D. R. CrewsThe Blue RoomWhen I was in the eighth grade, during 1963-64, at Dundalk
Junior High School in Baltimore County Maryland, one of our teachers took our one class on a field
trip to "The Blue Room" in Fort Meade, Maryland - where her husband was a
captain in the US Army. On that 1963-64 day in Ft. Meade's Blue Room, we junior high school
children from Dundalk, Maryland were hit with the brutal realization
that we not only lived 'under the gun' of commie-rat missiles - as we
had always known - we lived with the very real possibility that American
missiles would one final day wipe us and our families, friends and
neighbors right off the face of the earth. May 12, 2010 - 6:48:38 PM

D. R. CrewsI Beat Stephen Hawking 'To the Punch'Stephen Hawking recently told everyone not to talk to Space Aliens. But I beat Stephen Hawking 'to the punch' about the idiocy of us humans
trying to contact Space Aliens. I already have a Facebook page, which is
one week old, that addresses the subject of not contacting creatures
from Outer Space - Stop Human Beings From Trying To Contact Other Beings In Outer Space.Apr 26, 2010 - 12:24:28 AM

D. R. CrewsURSUSDAVE'S MUSIC PLAYLISTSThis article contains the link to my web site with free music playlists
on it. The first playlist, Songs From
The Soundtrack To My Life, is a life's goal achieved. That song
list has many great tunes on it, some you know, others you never heard
of. I have well known music mixed in with rarely heard and barely known
songs. I put a tremendous amount of work into all of the playlists on my web
site. Apr 24, 2010 - 12:18:32 PM

D. R. CrewsThe 1972 Premier of John Waters' Film Pink FlamingosI was at the very first showing of John Waters' poodle poop munching and
side-splittingly hilarious cinematic masterpiece Pink Flamingos. It was
shown in a mid-sized and rather comfy auditorium at the Maryland
Institute of Art on Mount Royal Avenue in Baltimore, Maryland.Apr 6, 2010 - 9:21:30 PM

D. R. CrewsMy Favorite Antique/Collectible Dumpster Diving FindIt may have been one of the guardian
angels who have, now and then, mysteriously lead me to treasure
troves in dumpsters I hadn't planned on diving at the time. Sometimes I
just sort'a float in the direction of a dumpster without decided
intention, and I score big.Mar 31, 2010 - 8:29:38 PM

D. R. CrewsFrom Pup to Pro Photographer: My Portfolio45 Years of photographs and paragraphs
from the life and adventures of a former
Rock n' Roll kid from the Dundalk
suburbs of Baltimore, Maryland who is an
ex-Maine Bear Hunting Guide, and a
county women's delight, a former US Army
Photographer who later enjoyed times as
a hitchhiking Hippie Type Hobo. And is
now a widely known and well appreciated
photographer and writer on the World
Wide Web.Aug 26, 2009 - 2:18:55 AM

D. R. CrewsA Most Important Veterans' Health Care IssueYou are a person who deeply and fully appreciates and is thankful for
all that America's military veterans have done for our country and for
freedoms. There is a veterans' health care issue that we all need to be
concerned about. Please read this Baltimore Sun article about it, and then my comment to it.

Aug 25, 2009 - 4:16:40 PM

D. R. CrewsHenry Louis Gates Jr. Should Apologize and Make AmendsProfessor Gates owes an apology to all police, government, media, and
public persons all around the world who now know or who will ever learn
about this bad situation that was easily avoidable. Who he owes this
apology to most of all are the millions of children whom he has
permanently, emotionally, socially injured by them learning of this
situation and unwittingly believing that it was caused by a light
skinned person mistreating a darker skinned person.Jul 30, 2009 - 5:53:29 PM

D. R. CrewsThe 65th Anniversary of D-DayJune 6, 2009 is the 65th Anniversary of the day in 1944 when our allied
troops hit the beaches and went-to-wackin' nasty Nazi's -- all front
and center and left and right -- out of the way on the way to free a
big chunk of Europe. The battles of D-Day lasted for days; let our
remembrances of those vicious fights last forever. Nazis, all Fascists, Imperialists, Commies, Taliban, Al Qaeda,
etceteras, if they can't be convinced of the natural benefits of many
freedoms for one and all...Jun 6, 2009 - 4:24:27 PM

D. R. CrewsSome Say My Stories About My Adventures In Maine Are Full Of LiesThurlow Harper wrote these statements in a comment on one of my Maine blogs:I am from Maine, and I am the Son in Law of Richard Libby who was a Master Maine Guide for Finley for years back in the 70's at Katahdin Lodge in Mount Chase Maine. If Marty and Finley Clark owed you, then you would have gotten paid in full! Parts of my reply: I am working and fighting for my life here. So I must fully defend myself. And you, Thurlow Harper, are far from being alone in believing that bullcrap, in your comment, to be true. My Aunt Martha created this family wrecking mess, and I am determined to set the record straight about it. I fully deserve every cent that I intend to collect from Martha's estate.Aug 25, 2008 - 1:04:25 AM

D. R. CrewsAn Email Telling Me To "Let It Go"I was officially told the wrong date for the last day that I can file for anything from my Aunt Martha Clarke's estate, which is worth multiple hundreds of thousands of dollars; the bulk of which is in probate in Penobscot County Maine. The date is not July 1, 2008, as written in a previous article of mine here on Magic City News, it is September 3, 2008 when I must have my claim filed. I have recently received one email, and also one comment, on a blog of mine, from strangers up in Maine who are telling me to give up my quest for truth, fairness and justice in this matter. Those two Mainers have a lot of crap in their heads about my case. And I am determined to set them and all like minded indivuals straight on the full facts of this situation. Aug 1, 2008 - 9:00:00 AM

D. R. CrewsIn Case I Am Attacked Or Murdered In Dundalk MarylandI have received a threatening post card. Now that I have finally begun to seek legal recourse against Martha Clarke's estate, there is a much higher probability that the person, or persons, who sent the post card will be coming after me to do me harm. This is the only way I have to inform any allies I may have in the Patten Maine area that I need them to think about whom it may be who would want to come and do me harm, a result of my Aunt Martha and Uncle Finley's hardheaded attitudes about not admitting that they had done me wrong.Jun 16, 2008 - 6:46:04 PM

D. R. CrewsI Need Legal Advice and A Lawyer For A Probate Situation In Penobscot County MaineI have until July 1 or 2, 2008 to file a claim against Martha Clarke's estate. I have the paper to do so, but am not sure of what I may or may not put in a claim for. I intend to put in a claim for the money owed to me for the work I did for Martha Clarke. I also believe that I should be compensated for the emotional and personal damages, pain and suffering that Martha Clarke has inflicted upon me. I need legal advice on what to do here. I need an attorney. My problem in pursuing this matter is that I am a very low income, disabled veteran. I cannot afford any legal fees up front, nor can I travel to Maine and still pay my house rent.Jun 16, 2008 - 4:09:09 PM

D. R. CrewsWhen I Moved From Maryland To Maine, I Went From One Nearly Crime Free Area To AnotherMy Uncle Finley K. Clarke, his sister--my mother Doris, my Aunt Martha (nee Thomas), my father--Bob Crews and all of their brothers and sisters grew up together in the Bethlehem Steel owned company mill town of Sparrows Point, Maryland. The small Town of Sparrows Point was an American community where you could comfortably walk around feeling 99.9999% positively certain that you would never be anywhere near an occurring crime. Thankfully, the relaxing, nearly crime free life of Patten, Maine was nothing new to Fin, Marty, me or anyone else in our my families. May 31, 2008 - 9:32:41 PM

D. R. CrewsI Bought A New 1969 Triumph 250 Motorcycle In MaineOne time, up in Maine, I was on that 250 Triumph and goin' down the road feelin' fine, when I hit a huge mass of flying insects, just past Peavey's Corner on the way to Shin Pond from Patten. The massive cloud of bugs was so thick that they were peppering my face like bird shot from a shotgun blast and were flying up under my sunglasses and blinding me.May 29, 2008 - 12:06:51 AM

D. R. CrewsA Good Day's Fishin at Katahdin Lodge and CampsThat is one very happy David R. Crews there holding up a stringer of sixteen trout caught in Hale Pond, on a good day in Moro Plantation, Maine, by Martha and Finley Clarke, Wayne and Barbara Birmingham and David (myself). The pond is a mile and a quarter long, maybe a half mile or so across. A mile and a quarter long stretch of fresh, cold water seems too large to be called a pond, but in Maine, a pond is spring fed and has an outlet, a lake has an inlet and an outlet.May 25, 2008 - 2:17:26 AM

D. R. CrewsThat Ornery HorseVery few people ever got anywhere on That Ornery Horse. I can't remember the old guy's real name, so he shall be referred to here as That Ornery Horse. He sure was ornery to me. When I rode him, he wouldn't go hardly one darn direction that I wanted him to. May 24, 2008 - 12:57:38 AM

D. R. CrewsJohn Birmingham and Katahdin Lodge's Trusty Old Land RoverWhen that photo of John Birmingham and the Land Rover was taken, John was home on leave from the U.S. Army. I learned how to drive standard transmission, manual clutch and stick shift equipped vehicles by giving that Land Rover something to worry about. That was during the infamous summer of '68, when America was metamorphosing from being 100% tried and true, red-white-and-blue, to being the land of Hippie protesters, clouds of Pot smoke, and radical new found ways of conducting one's relationships with the opposite sex.May 23, 2008 - 12:32:22 AM

D. R. CrewsMy Uncle Finley Surrounded By Family and FriendsMorris and Marge, Fin and Marty, and I were all in the Lodge's dining room playing Cribbage and sharing great conversation, when Gary and Cathy Glidden pulled into the dooryard on their motorcycle. They were just stopping by for a quick visit. Gary and Cathy worked at the Lodge during hunting season--Gary as a hunting and fishing guide, and Cathy on the housekeeping staff. Listening to Fin, Marty and our Mainer friends, like Morris and Marge, tell stories, some true some not so at all, was far better entertainment than watching TV any day of the week. May 22, 2008 - 1:37:47 AM

D. R. CrewsMr. and Mrs. Gary Glidden and SonsIn the small town, close knit community that I was living in up there, one word from Gary or Cathy that I was any kind of a risk factor to the local folk's safety, or well being, and my Uncle Fin would have had to send me away from there. The last time I saw Cathy and Gary, was in 1979. I stepped into their cozy, clean, comfortable home, and there was Cathy tenderly holding their one-week-old son, Enoch, in her loving arms. During my first time on the WWW, I hadn't surfed the web for very long before this thought popped into my head, "I wonder if Enoch made it." Enoch told me, via email, that Gary and Cathy had adopted a fine young son.May 21, 2008 - 12:01:01 AM

D. R. CrewsMy First Beard or Do I Just Need To Wash My Face?I remember telling all my family and friends there in the Lodge dining room that the snowshoes needed to be in the photo, so that my family and friends down in Maryland could see them. The picture is cropped that way because it allows other snowshoers an opportunity to get a kick out of checkin' out what may very well be some handmade, moose hide, 1960's era Aroostook County snowshoes.May 20, 2008 - 1:27:48 AM

D. R. CrewsChet and Suzann Chase Went Snowshoeing with MartyAny guy who looked like Chet, well, he was a nice guy at heart, but that don't matter to some of the kinds of rugged outdoorsman type of kids who were in an abundance at Katahdin High. Chet was just a natural target for their favorite brand of high jinx. When you are either working or having fun, or in many cases having fun at working, in the Great Outdoors, you either follow the rules that experienced outdoors enthusiasts tell you about, or you will eventually suffer the harsh consequences.May 19, 2008 - 1:02:55 AM

D. R. CrewsThe Rarest Bird 'Round Katahdin Lodge Was A Formally Dressed Finley K.I just remember that I took the shot because it was the only time I ever saw Finley wearing a formal suit and tie. At Katahdin Lodge, we stayed well stocked with food and other supplies all the time. Fin and Marty were next door neighbors while growing up on Sparrows Point. That made it easy for any of us to get together for holidays and birthdays. But I have no idea how that 1977 birthday cake, which was homemade for me by Winnie's daughter in Maine, could have been 100% perfectly tuned to my sweet tooth.May 17, 2008 - 4:38:08 PM

D. R. CrewsKatahdin Lodge and Camp's Dining RoomThis beautiful, but serviceable, dining room table was the center of the Katahdin Lodge Universe. The most obvious thing to all who view this photo is the size and shape of the beautifully grained table. Look at all the room there is for big, deep, full bowls and wide, full plates of food. And look at all the room there is for losta' friendly folk to sit all around that table, and to enjoy each other's company. Anyone for Cribbage? How about a game of Yatzee ?May 17, 2008 - 1:05:35 AM

D. R. CrewsNon-Service Connected Military Veterans Disability PensionI inform everyone whom I can about the terms of my Department of Veterans Affairs pension, because there are many other American military veterans who also qualify for one, desperately need one, but who have never learned of it. About a year ago, the DVA was ordered (I Believe it was by Congress) to educate more veterans about their non-service connected pension benefits, so I know for certain that many vets don't know of these earned benefits.May 15, 2008 - 12:56:58 AM

D. R. CrewsGuiding Bear Hunters and Driving The Backroads of MaineThe hunting business is far better for a natural environment than the likes of the Bethlehem Steel Mill near where I grew up in Maryland. During the past thirty-some years, whenever I'm telling anyone my stories about my Maine adventures, they always think that tracking wounded bears at night without taking a firearm along with me was the most dangerous part of those experiences. That is not so. The driving was absolutely the most dangerous part of the job. I have ta' warn ya', there's photos of dead bears in this article. May 15, 2008 - 12:40:11 AM

D. R. CrewsBeautify America--Get A HaircutWhen I was in Maine, during November and December of 1968, I kept my, slightly, long hair combed back behind my ears, or tucked up under my hat, so that it was not too obviously so long. I had to get a haircut in order to be able to live and work at my Aunt Martha and Uncle Finley K. Clarke's Katahdin Lodge, of Patten, Maine. In 1969, in the southern Aroostook County/northern Penobscot County area of the Great North Woods of Maine, longhaired men were not very much welcomed at all.May 14, 2008 - 1:22:37 AM

D. R. CrewsHip Shops In 1965-68 Baltimore, Beatniks, Mods, and The Psychedelic PropellerAfter you finish reading this article, you will definitely wonder how I ever fit right in up in 1968 era Maine. This entire body of work, this series of articles, has to do with what I knew, when growing up into my teen years, then what I had discovered about myself and the people and places of Northern Maine, when I first visited that part of God's Country. May 13, 2008 - 1:13:13 AM

D. R. CrewsThe Dundalk Maryland Neighborhood Where I Grew UpIn order for you to understand what the people and places in and around Patten, Maine mean to me, you need to know what kind of a young man I was, and where I came from just before I moved to the Katahdin Valley area of Maine. It would be one thing if I had been a country boy from northern Baltimore County, Western Maryland, or Maryland's Eastern Shore who had worked outdoors on his family's farm, and had hunted and fished his entire young life. But it was another thing for me, because I was a Mod clothes wearing Rock n' Roll minded kid from the Baltimore suburb of Dundalk, Maryland. I had quite quickly become a country kid up in Maine. And I loved it.May 8, 2008 - 12:06:39 AM

D. R. CrewsInnards Of A 1968 Era Ski Doo SnowmobileThis article has the last of my scanned in vintage snowmobile photos. I have web searched for better photos. So far, mine are the best. Something that has shocked me though is, there are many vintage snowmobile enthusiasts out there who rebuild, ride and/or display old sleds at snowmobile shows. Links to all of that vintage sled info are on my web site that is linked to the bottom of all the articles in this series. May 7, 2008 - 2:41:18 PM

D. R. CrewsSnowmobiling On Tillie's Back FieldWhen anyone from Katahdin Lodge went snowmobile riding alone, they were required to carry certain emergency items with them. In case of mechanical breakdown or the rider got stuck in deep snow. One of the coolest and most unique things that I ever experienced happened while riding a snowmobile on the old farm fields, which are seen in the two photographs in this article, which were taken in 1969 on a Katahdin Lodge neighbor's farm field in the Township of Moro Plantation, Maine.May 7, 2008 - 1:31:23 AM

D. R. CrewsA Great Day of Snowmobiling in Moro, MaineThis article has a great set of snowmobile action, color photos. The photos could use some digital enhancements, which I have no skill at doing, but sure would like to learn. But they are still a cool part of my set of the best vintage snowmobile photos there is. One photo on here brought back memories of an old Maine man named Putt Gerow and antique bottle collecting possibilities up there. So those memories are included, as if you and I were comfortably sitting in my home, while looking at these old photographs together, and I was reminiscing about little stories that the photos remind me of. May 4, 2008 - 7:24:46 PM

D. R. CrewsSnowmobile Riding At Katahdin LodgeHere is the second article in this series that has vintage snowmobile photos from 1969 in it. These are great old black and white shots that I custom printed in 2001, from some very poorly exposed negatives. In 1969, I had a cheap 35MM camera and had done the best I could with that camera and my then undeveloped photography skills. These are some great snowmobile action photos in this article though. I have yet to see any better vintage sledding action shots any place else on the Internet. May 3, 2008 - 4:38:48 PM

D. R. CrewsSnowmobiling The Day After A Blizzard HitThis is the first article of this series to have a snowmobile photo in it. I believe that I have the best set of vintage 1969 snowmobile photos that there is. You will find a link to my Northern Maine Adventures Photo Album web site at the end of this article, and there are links to several snowmobile web sites on that web site. I have not found better photos on those snowmobile sites. If you possess or can locate a better set of vintage sled shots than what I have, please let me know. It's just a little friendly competition, there are no prizes, but you get to have your photos published on snowmobile web sites. The rest of my snowmobile photos will be published in other articles on here.May 3, 2008 - 12:06:04 AM

D. R. CrewsA Very Close Family and An Idiot StickMy family had come up to visit us at Katahdin Lodge during my sister's Easter break from high school. My mother had hoped that I was going to go back home to Dundalk, Maryland with them when they left. But the woods, the young women and the good times up in and around Patten, Maine had quite a solid grip on me. Most men who ever worked for Katahdin Lodge were highly skilled idiot stick operators. I'd be glad to stop on by over to your place to coach you on how to properly and safely use an idiot stick.May 1, 2008 - 6:51:03 PM

D. R. CrewsThe Lodge Had Two Bobcats In A Large CageKatahdin Lodge had two Bobcats in a cage, one male and one female. The cage sat out in the Lodge's front yard--I mean dooryard. To Mainers it's called a doorya'd. I used to hand feed strips of leftover, cooked roast beef to the male Bobcat. That was just as much a treat for any onlookers as it was for Bobby. The two cats did not mate. But when Bobcat mating season came around, the male cat did make loud, scrowwing, guttural, really far-out sounding mating calls.May 1, 2008 - 1:01:01 AM

D. R. CrewsSplittin' Wood and Workin' HardIn November of '68, when I moved into Katahdin Lodge, wood stoves provided all our heat. I split, remember that, kids, to an old pro it is "split", not "chopped" wood, I split a lot of wood during '68-'69. In late summer of '69, I split 19 cords of firewood for the coming winter. That was just a small part of the work I did at the Lodge. It was worth it to be able to live up in the Great North Woods.Apr 29, 2008 - 6:56:15 PM

D. R. CrewsPatten, Maine and Dundalk, Maryland--Two Small, Somewhat Similar American TownsIn order for you to understand what my Northern Maine Adventures truly meant to an eighteen-year-old, Baltimore area, suburban kid you must know a little about where I lived, and what my life was like, just before I moved to Maine. For those good reasons, I am going to show you a photo of "downtown" Patten, Maine and a photo of "downtown" Dundalk, Maryland. The photos were taken 40 years apart, but neither downtown area has changed very much during those 40 years.Apr 28, 2008 - 11:05:21 PM

D. R. CrewsBallard's Citco Service Station On A Saturday NightIn 1968-69, one of the best hangouts for young men in Patten, Maine was at Ballard's Citco Service Station on a Saturday night. Well it was a small country town, ya' know. I custom hand printed the three black and white photos in this article--in Maryland, under the expert tutelage of Mark Trojan, at Dundalk Community College's black and white photo "wet" lab. The prints were made from some seriously underexposed negatives. Because I only had one cheap camera in 1969, when I took the photos. And hellooow thei'ah Ahnie! (that's translated for you Mainers who drop your r's.)Apr 26, 2008 - 7:04:11 PM

D. R. CrewsTwo Legged Dear Hunting In Patten MaineMany folks who live in the Patten area, or who once did, have read some of my stories and seen some of my photographs about my times living with and working for my Aunt Martha and Uncle Finley Clarke up at Katahdin Lodge and Camps. There are some unresolved, serious family and business issues accurately portrayed in those previously published works of mine. NONE of that seriousness is anywhere to be seen in this new series of published pages about Fin, Marty, Patten Maine, Dundalk Maryland, Rock n' Roll and me. This is all about a whole lotta' fun and good times. It is an easy and light hearted read. Apr 25, 2008 - 7:15:50 PM